The Globe. THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 1879.

Globe, Volume XX, Issue 1562, 20 February 1879, Page 2

The Globe. THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 1879.

Our supply of water per man for domestic purposes is certainly not what it used to bo. Either owing to the yield of the artesian wells failing, or to the increased demand on the flow, many people are put to considerable straights in tho matter. But things might be worse, and if we look at affairs in Dunedin and Wellington we may congratulate ourselves on our comparatively happy state. In Dunedin present arrangements are most unsatisfactory, and tho water supplied from the existing reservoirs far from pure. Many of the inhabitants have laid the flattering unction to their souls, that, when the new Silverstream contract is completed, all will be well. But the now supply will be only auxiliary to tho old one, and some radical change will have to made, as tho health of the city is involved. In Wellington things are still worse. Tho reservoir there, until tho other day, had not been cleared out for seven years, A veteran eel was found disporting himself therein, and indeed, the engineer, Mr. Baird, is said to have been disappointed at not finding an orchard and a croquet lawn, for there was sufficient fine alluvial soil to form both. Tho nerves of tho townspeople wore still further shaken by tho report that a Chinaman had boon discovered in tho waters; this however luckily proved to bo a canard.

The judicial faculty is not so common as is generally supposed. At all events, in matters of sport it is most difficult to satisfy requirements. Good cricketing umpires are frequently not to bo got for love or money, and many a pleasant match has been totally ruined by this post being inefficiently filled. The recent fracas on the Sydney ground, on the occasion of the English match, will be fresh in the minds of our readers, and point the moral, though it will hardly adorn the tale. In the matter of coursing, things are much the same. It has been found most difficult to fix on a suitable judge for the Waterloo Coursing Mooting, to bo held at Oamaru next season. We hoar that an Otago coursing club recently wrote to a gentleman in Australia who has the reputation of being the best judge of this description of sport on this side of the line, with a view of securing his services at a Waterloo meeting. The gentleman in question consented to come over for £4OO. The Otago Daily Times, from which the above is taken, significantly adds —He was not engaged.

We in this colony are very proud of our sunshine. Like Porthos, one of the “ Three Musquotoors,” who at his chateau boasted to his friends Athos and Artaguan of “ his air, his breezes, and his sunshine,” wo are apt to boast of the quantity of solar rays that wo enjoy in comparison with the folk in the old country. An old colonist in Loudon basks on the sunny side of Pall Mall instead of sneaking along the shady side, and during November and the following months, a perpetual sneer is on his lips, and ho is apt to boro his friends by claiming as a personal attribute the climate of his adopted home. We are sorry, therefore, for the sake of those salamanders, that the Government are not at present inclined to accede to Dr. Hector’s suggestion re the introduction of sunshinemeasuring apparatuses, so that a fair comparison on this point might bo made between the climates of Groat Britain and Now Zealand. The first cost would not be largo, and the meteorological observers at the different stations would take the necessary observations without much additional trouble. According to the Registrar - General’s returns, the average amount of sunshine per day at Greenwich for the four months from the middle of May to the middle of September—the English summer —was only five and a half hours. If we wore to tabulate the results obtained from observations in New Zealand, the old colonist might carry the return in his pocket, and triumphantly crush his fogbesotted cousin with hard figures.

Constable Maesii has made unto himself a name. Ho has captured a small boy from tho Maoris in the most gallant

maimer. The story is a curious one, as given by the Bay of Plenty Times. The boy, William Floyd by uaiiio, lias been living with the Maoris for the lastthree years. He is apparently about ton years of ago, and seems quick and intelligent. According to the account given by the Natives, ho was sold by his mother, who lives at Napier, to the Maoris for 2s Gd and a kit of kumaras. Marsh, by a series of masterly manoeuvres, hoodwinked the Maoris, who were anxious to keep the boy, and stole into the whare, whore was the object of bis search. Ho struck a match and found him sleeping with some other Maori children. On being awakened the lad made the most furious efforts to escape, and cried bitterly, declaring his wish to remain with the Maoris. However, ho was borne off, examined by Mr. G. A. Proeco, R.M., and committed to the Training School. Under what clause of what Act the boy was thus shunted into the paths of civilisa lion, wo have not boon able to find out. The Maoris had been extremely kind to him, and he certainly was living with them with the full consent of his parents.

Mdlle. Charbonnet’s linos have fallen in pleasant places down South. A Timaru contemporary speaks thus of her: — “ Whether it bo in point of physique, thorough musical talent, and inconceivable manipulation of the groat modern instrument, this gifted and charming artiste can certainly claim powers of an extraordinary character. Her grace of manner, her soft and undulating ways when approaching an audience, and the subdued vivacity of her every movement, add a groat deal in fascinating those who cannot but admire her extraordinary skill as a pianiste.” To undulate properly when approaching an audience must indeed require more than ordinary talent.